Even 'The Odyssey' and 'Spider-Man' can't save Hollywood

"The Odyssey" is simply a large deed astatine the container office, contempt Elon Musk's champion efforts.

"Obsession," "Backrooms," "Project Hail Mary," and "Michael" were large hits successful 2026, too. And the newest "Spider-Man" movie, coming this week, looks definite to beryllium a large hit.

So. Hollywood, which has been beset pinch each kinds of issues, is yet back. Right?

Yes. But also, no.

It is existent that group who for illustration movies, and who activity successful and astir the movie business, are delighted that audiences are showing up, successful large numbers, to spot movies successful theaters this year. It's peculiarly reassuring aft Covid fundamentally wiped retired the theatrical business for a spell.

But moreover aft you return Covid retired of the equation, the truth is that moviegoing has been successful diminution for galore years. And that still hasn't changed successful 2026.

In the 2nd 4th of this year, AMC, the world's biggest theatre chain, saw attendance driblet by 26 cardinal compared to 2019 — a 26.5% drop.

And by 2019, moviegoing had already been declining for adjacent to 2 decades. In 2002, moviegoers successful the US and Canada bought astir 1.6 cardinal tickets; by 2019, that number had dropped to 1.3 billion.

So erstwhile group successful and astir the movie business opportunity 2026 will beryllium the champion twelvemonth the manufacture has seen since the pandemic, they're right. What they're not saying is that things person been successful diminution good earlier Covid, and it doesn't look for illustration that's ever going to change.

That's because it's rather clear — to me, astatine slightest — that moviegoing started becoming little celebrated astatine the nonstop aforesaid clip that the net became wide available. It's not that group garbage to spot movies — arsenic we've seen this year, they're consenting to flock to a assortment of different genres and stories. It's conscionable that there's plentifulness of title for their clip and money, truthful they request a very compelling logic to travel to the theaters.

What does that mean for Hollywood?

For theatre operators, the connection is clear: They will person to unrecorded pinch less customers, truthful they request to make much gross from each 1 they do get by expanding summons and concession prices. AMC, for instance, is doing that rather successfully: In Q2, moreover pinch that monolithic driblet successful attendance, the concatenation accrued gross by 6% and adjusted profits by astir 40% complete the aforesaid play successful 2019.

Theater owners person besides trained immoderate movie fans to really make a spell of it, and walk other money connected theaters pinch "premium ample formats" — not conscionable Imax, but different deluxe viewing experiences that committedness luxury seating and top-tier screens and audio, for illustration AMC's Dolby Cinema brand. More than half of "The Odysesy's" first week home gross came from premium formats: And it's not conscionable AMC. I spent $55.36 for 2 "Odyssey" tickets astatine my section Alamo Drafthouse theatre successful Brooklyn past week, and past different $10.95 for a azygous Coke Zero, including a extremity for the worker who brought it to my seat.

(No complaints from me, by the way: Still a nosy measurement to walk 3 hours. But please, Sony Pictures, which owns the Alamo chain, get free of your infuriating QR code ordering setup.)

As Puck's Matt Belloni notes, the caller normal of moviegoing besides puts unit connected studios and movie-makers, whose costs support going up, sloppy of attendance. It will beryllium difficult to fig retired really to support costs flat, fto unsocial down, successful a world wherever consumers only travel to theaters erstwhile they're told there's thing extra-special to see. But nary 1 said the movie business was an easy business.